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U.S.-Cuba Problems

The many complaints that the United States has against Fidel Castro's regime in Cuba can nearly all be traced back to root causes either created or influenced by United States policy. Over the course of Cuba's history the U.S. has systematically subverted both Cuba's attempts at sovereignty and its advancements towards economic independence. By acting against the formation of an independent Cuba and supporting despotic regimes, the U.S. fostered a strong anti-American sentiment in the minds of the Cuban people. All of these factors worked together to contribute to the current and longstanding problems between the U.S. and Cuba.

The U.S. began their direct involvement in Cuba at the end of Cuba's war for independence. Though there was little effort necessary to push the Spanish out of Cuba and its other possessions, the U.S. quickly used the opportunity to establish a significant military presence in Cuba after the end of the Spanish-American war. That position was quickly used to U.S. advantage when the addition of the Platt Amendment to Cuba's new constitution was made a condition to the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Cuba (Healy). The Platt Amendment limited the rights of Cuba to conduct its own foreign policy and granted the U.S. the right to intervene in Cuba "for the preservation of Cuban independence and the maintenance of a stable government, adequately protecting life, property, and individual liberty"(Fitzgibbon). In the time that followed, U.S. companies i